Bird control methods

[JPA Cate]

Originally Posted by Seymore

No, any whole dead bird will do, preferably still with feathers. I have seen a dead sparrow keep everything away.

Anybody here know why the dead bird works?

Ann

[Rustic Charm]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Anybody here know why the dead bird works?

Ann

I don't think its possible to know for sure, but it seems likely that the common explanation here may be true, which is, it marks the boat as a 'death' boat, where danger is present.

It definately seems to be effective 'locally' only though. Because as I posted in the OP, when I spent a couple nights at Port Sorell, 20-30 miles away my boats reputation to birds didn't seem to be known as Starlings descended on mass. If you haven't read it, since returning from being slipped in early December, I don't have a dead bird on board.

But, on returning back to my mooring in the Tamar, birds don't even seem to like to fly 'over' it. They seem to go around it.

The only explanation I have is its a boat with a bad reputation among birds and they somehow spread this knowledge around.

(It is the only dark coloured boat in the marina, but I really don't think birds are colour bigots to the extent of Aussie bogans, I hope that's not the reason)

[sailorboy1]

Best method is to keep tossing fish onto the boat a distance away, teaches the birds where to hang out.

I've heard it works best if the other boat also lets them halyards bang.

[s/v Beth]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Anybody here know why the dead bird works?

Ann

The more I think about it Ann, the more it makes sense. Down were you are, in Australia, they have shark nets. Now the nets don't work by keeping the sharks out, they work by getting a few tangled in, they rot in the nets, and sharks will not approach the area. Primitive brain programing I think.

[nimblemotors]

At the landfill I've seen them use pistol blanks to make them fly off so you can unload your trash. They all return minutes later.

Originally Posted by a64pilot

This is the only thing I've seen that really works, but I doubt it would go over very well in a marina

[Rustic Charm]

Airports use shotguns, cannons and other noise control endeavours. The intent is to clear the area for an aircraft activity. In the 90's I watched 30 or 40 airport workers running down a runway flapping their arms to clear the main international runway. They are all temporary and standing on your deck waving your hands will do the same.

This thread was about keeping birds free for lengthy periods of time when no one is at your boat.

The only suggestion I've seen which I'd not heard of is the CD use. For me I preferably want something that I don't have to spend time undoing which is why I dislike the netting idea.

[Duct Tape]

I was recently in the marina next to the airport in Genoa. In order to keep seagulls away from the runway they play a recording of a seagull in distress over a loud speaker...this just might piss your neighbours off a little though...

[mikereed100]

You guys have it easy. We have a peregrine falcon that has taken up residence on our upper spreader. All night long bird feet, heads, wings and gizzards rain down on the deck, followed by the inevitable shower of falcon crap. Flapping the halyard gets rid of him but then he's back the next evening. I don't think the dead bird thing would work with him as he provides the dead birds himself. Falcons are beautiful animals until you are awakened at midnight with an earful of warm raptor crap through the open hatch.

[savoir]

Stretch a couple of strings above each spreader.

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by mikereed100

You guys have it easy. We have a peregrine falcon that has taken up residence on our upper spreader. All night long bird feet, heads, wings and gizzards rain down on the deck, followed by the inevitable shower of falcon crap. Flapping the halyard gets rid of him but then he's back the next evening. I don't think the dead bird thing would work with him as he provides the dead birds himself. Falcons are beautiful animals until you are awakened at midnight with an earful of warm raptor crap through the open hatch.

The same bird in the same spot should be relatively easy to take car of in any number of ways. It's the random flocks that are the big problem.

[mikereed100]

Originally Posted by savoir

Stretch a couple of strings above each spreader.

That's the solution I came up with too, but I haven't yet had enough falcon poo in my ear to temp me up the mast just yet. I like the suggestion above about using cable ties. When I put in the strings I will try the cable ties on my wind instrument strut.

[Sailor g]

Originally Posted by Duct Tape

I was recently in the marina next to the airport in Genoa. In order to keep seagulls away from the runway they play a recording of a seagull in distress over a loud speaker...this just might piss your neighbours off a little though...

The perfect thing for the neighbor with banging halyards! Just Joking!!

[Steadman Uhlich]

What would I use?

I would first use the Fake Snake and the CDs on a string first as they are cheap, movable, and may work and would be easy to remove and stow when I am ready to sail. No smell or decaying animal to keep or stow.

Then move to "real dead bird" next (if one can find a dead bird), if the Fake Animals don't work.

But, for some spots, or if the other items don't work, I think some of the bird barrier spikes (as in video) would do the trick very effectively, either temporarily or some more permanent installs. I am thinking of on a radar/solar arch, but some might want to consider them on a spreader too. If the boat is on a mooring, and left for longer time, rather than have my boat look like a guano collection point (see the photo I posted earlier) I would use these spike strips on some removable lengths of plastic strips that would be temporarily fixed (with a tie) to the boom or elsewhere the birds are landing/perching. Then remove them when not needed (e.g. when going sailing) and leave them for next time.

This is a video of a product (bird barrier spikes) that are easy to use on structures. The video even shows them on top of a boat radar radome. This is what was on the overhang of my art gallery building front, it was very effective at keeping pigeons off the front of my building (they would fly to my neighbor's building to land/poop).

The strips are made of Plastic with some thin stainless steel wire "pins" or "spikes."

Once installed they are not noticeable, or less noticeable and objectionable than guano.

Guano stinks! I lived in an apartment where pigeons would come roost and poop on the patio of the apartment above me. The smell was horrible, like a bad day at a zoo. My apartment patio was protected by a black cat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uYY-cDhIrs

[captain58sailin]

I get Bald Eagles in my rigging and they always clutter up the deck with seagull parts and they poop a whole lot more than the seagulls.

[Steve Bean]

In Monterey, an osprey has shown up recently, and chose my spreader to dine on a coot, dropping some of the scraps on the
deck. If he makes this a habit I'll install some monofilament or fabricate some kind of spike strip.